If ever there was a case study of how quickly things can change in F1, it is the Williams team.

They won the Spanish Grand Prix in May 2012, failed to get a podium for the rest of the season, then had a dismal 2013 with only 5 points scored (four of them in the penultimate race).

Now the signs are that Williams is going through a renaissance; the team has the right hybrid turbo power plant in Mercedes and it’s announced a series of sponsors in recent days with an even bigger one to come on March 6. It even has a new logo, to underline that a page has been turned and it’s a fresh beginning.

Last night the team confirmed that Brazilian oil giant Petrobras was rejoining the team after an absence of several years. At the same time Banco do Brasil came on board; their logo will appear on the engine cover of the car, as well as the overalls worn by each driver. This makes it a significant deal.

Felipe Nasr comes as part of the package; the former GP2 driver will attend all Grands Prix during the season and will get to drive the car in three tests and five FP1 sessions during the year.

And on March 6 the team will unveil its new Martini livery at a ceremony in London’s West End. Sadly for the media this clashes with McLaren’s Ron Dennis breaking his silence, leaving anguished journalists trying to be in two places at once!

Revival is the name of the game at Grove. The team has bounced back from a disastrous technical foray under Mike Coughlan, whereby they were unable to master the exhaust blown diffuser and paid a heavy price, given how far ahead of the game their then engine partner Renault was in that technology.

This year the EBD is banned and that means that Williams’ baseline is closer to the other teams, who have all lost a lot of downforce from the removal of the EBD. On top of that the Mercedes looks to be the best prepared and most potent engine in class at this early stage of the new formula. Williams has been racking up the miles again this week in testing at Bahrain; after a poor first day with an electronics issue, which knocked out the fuel system, the car has covered 176 laps of the 5.4km Bahrain circuit in the last two days – almost four race distances worth of mileage.

Pat Symonds is now in charge of the technical department and it will be his job to steer the team through the development maze which lies ahead, not only in the new hybrid technology but also in aerodynamics, which are much changed this year and offer great scope for finding gains throughout the year.

They need to work on all aspects of their competitive approach; last year they were consistently among the slowest at pit stops, for example, giving away seconds to the top teams and even their midfield rivals. This will be a key indicator of a change of approach this year, if they can raise their game in areas such as this.

The driver pairing looks well balanced; Felipe Massa has a lot of experience and is still quick, as he showed regularly against Fernando Alonso last season. He also has a point to prove after a demoralising experience next to the Spaniard. He is also very small and light, which helps the engineers in these cars. Valtteri Bottas is in his second full season and has showed that he has the speed, now he needs to turn in complete race weekends to rack up the points.

Pastor Maldonado must be wondering about the wisdom of his move away from Williams to Lotus, which is still struggling to do the miles with the troublesome Renault hybrid engine. But the car looks sound and once Renault gets on top of its problems, the team is likely to feature. Maldonado needed a change of air anyway and Williams appears to have proved able to replace his PDVSA sponsor dollars.

Claire Williams as commercial director has clearly done well this winter and Williams will no doubt present itself with confidence at the launch on March 6 in London.

But recent experience will tell them to take nothing for granted. F1 is an unforgiving business and things can change quickly, as they well know.

+100. The last several years have been very tough for Williams supporters. I have to say that Williams must have the best marketing team in F1 – coming straight off the back of such a hugely disastrous season, they find themselves with a new, highly regarded technical team, plenty of new sponsorship, the best engines, and two highly rated drivers (no rookie “pay” drivers, like we’ve seen in their cars for a few years now). I’m so excited for the Martini announcement – can’t wait to see the livery. Williams are surely in the best position they’ve been in for more than a decade. C’mon Williams!!

They are a storied team who still receive some airtime despite the problems they have faced in recent years. I suspect the new sponsors have recognised this and are also considering how the media will/would cover any upturn in the teams performances this year. Add in the Massa ‘effect – lots of coverage in Latin America with all of it’s emerging markets – and it is now such a hard sell to my mind.

And a win in the Lotus for Pastor Maldonado, just to shut-up all the [mod] and prove once-and-for-all that he’s a super-talented, GP-winning driver!

(which shouldn’t be in doubt, but b/c there are a lot of English-speaking F1 fans who dislike Pastor, they seek to undermine the legitimacy of his success and try to call into question his place in Formula 1 – despite the fact that he’s ALREADY WON a race…one of only 3 drivers on the grid to do so w/o also being a WDC!)

I agree that there is a great vibe around Williams this year. Not sure the car has shown Merc like pace in this weeks test but it doesn’t look like a dog either. I hope they have a really solid season.

I for one cant wait for March 6th, I’m interested in who scheduled March 6th first Ron or Frank, is Ron up to his old tricks again by “pinching” from Williams, this time the limelight.
Regardless things are certainly looking up for Team Willy.

Things are looking up for Williams and if anyone deserves it they do. They survived one of the toughest era’s of F1 against the big spending manufacturers where others failed & disappeared. Hopefully this is the beginning of another successful period in their history. Claire Williams has given this team a breath of fresh air. Good luck!

That was a fantastic charging win by Our Nige. What’s more, it was on the original flat-out Silverstone, apart from that stupid fiddly chicane before Woodcote. Netherless despite the chicane, Our Nige’s fastest lap was an amazing 153.06 Mph! I still think that is one of the fastest laps ever in the history of F1, probably only Monza and Osterriechring faster.
I would have loved to driven around the original Silverstone with the daunting original Stowe and Club corners, although in fairness to Silverstone the changes they have made over the years have kept the spirit of what the track is about – blindingly fast corners.

Frank and Claire have made some excellent recruitments. Firstly, getting Pat Symonds on the pay roll. Pat is a very sharp, savvy operator who brings excellent clarity of thought and good operational efficiency to a team. Secondly, getting the Merc V6 contract will give them a potential power/torque advantage. Thirdly, signing up Felipe and getting his mate Big Rob to look after the engineering department behind the scenes. Fourth, Vatty is a potential Flying Finn in the mould of Keke, Mika and Kimi.
I rate Claire very highly, she is very streetwise and sharp. Having common sense and being able to think on your feet is vital in F1 and Claire does seem to those qualities – remember in Spain 2012 Williams out witted Ferrari on strategy which helped Pastor onto his win.
I reckon Frank and Claire will do some serious business this year, maybe not a championship, but podiums or even wins are there if Grove can realise its potential.
Frank and Claire are in a good place at the moment.

PS James – if Frank and Claire’s main sponsors are from Italy and Brazil shouldn’t it be racking up sponsors euros and Brazilian reals rather than US dollars? The FIA switched to Euro currency quite some time ago as the European Union has the biggest economy in the world (bigger than the USA and China combined!).

Sorry, my mistake SAYING EU economy bigger than USA and China combined.
However, EU economy is still bigger than the USA though.
Remember, Northern Europe – and I class Paris and Northern France as being part of Northern Europe – is along with commonwealth realms of Australia, New Zealand and Singapore the least corrupt area in the world where business dealings have to be transparent – hence why the Germans and Swiss want to have a nice chat with Mr E.
The USA is actually the most corrupt developed western country – at the end of 2013 it was ranked a pitiful 19th, totally outperformed by Northern Europe and Australasia. Therefore because the United States is tarnished by corruption and bribery most organisations prefer to use European/Australasian currency as it is “cleaner” and “safer” than the US dollar.
Check the Corruption Perception Index for more info and you will say why the FIA has adopted the more stable, less corrupt Euro.

I forget to mention that the FIA is a European organisation and has links to the EU (the FIA has a strong input into car safety in Europe, Japan and Australasia) it is probably duty bound to have the Euro. Also, I wonder if the CIA has been tapping the FIA and Jean Todt just like they were tapping up Mrs Angela Merkel and even possibly other European statemen/women? There’s a lot of tension between the United States and European Union which is probably why the FIA will remain in Paris, with its close transport links to the motor sport industry in Stuttgart, Munich, Modena, and of course Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire!

PS The US dollar being the reserve currency – I’m not that applies in Russia, China, France, Germany, Iran, Vietnam and Cuba.
There was a grand prix in Cuba – for sports cars, but netherless it attracted some of the big names including Fangio and Moss. In fact, the great Argentine was kidnapped by Castro’s men – although he was unharmed and later released. In fact, he became good friends with his captors!

Sorry GazBoy, I don’t buy it. France’s Hollande is in the process of chasing out all the capital from his country. Too many meddling politicians looking to build a “legacy” in Europe … just serves to keep potential foreign investment monies permanently on the sidelines. Of course the EU is a big market and has some clout, but in terms of future growth its prospects are dim compared to those of the Americas and SE Asia.

The US economy, even in spite of Obama’s ill-advised economic policies, is still the most diversified and dynamic economy in the world.

I say this as a staunchly proud Canadian still basking in the glow of sticking it to our American cousins in both the men’s and women’s Olympic hockey this week.

RE KRB: We’ll have to agree to disagree I’m afraid. I can’t imagine the FIA in Paris relocating to the United States any time soon. The same applies for the Formula 1 industry in Britain, Italy, France, Germany and Switzerland.
Or FIFA, football’s governing body – based in Zurich.
The FIA switched to the Euro because the European Union, along with Australasia and Singapore, is the cleanest, least corrupt place in the world to do business and is not tarnished with a currency involved in all sorts of impropriety such as money laundering, extortion and kidnapping – HSBC New York was involved in laundering Mexican drug funds for example.
Anyway I’ve got that off my chest, respect to the commonwealth realm of Canada – I forgot to mention that Canada is one of the world’s least corrupt countries. Probably something to do with, like Australia, New Zealand , Hong Kong and Singapore it is part of the Anglo-sphere.
Always look forward to the race at Montreal. The likes of 2007, 2008, 2010 and 2011 were fantastic races!

GazBoy, never said anything about the FIA relocating. It should stay right where it is. I think any organization like that would hold a number of the “big” currencies, lest they be caught out by one diving vis-a-vis the others.

I find it quite ironic that you were discussing corruption, and FIFA came up!

I’m not sure there’s much to link Claire Williams with strategy calls. The Barcelona track favours new tyre grip with its high speed corners. In the early 2000s I remember a Schumacher-Hakkinen race where unusually the fastest laps were set with new tyres and high fuel rather than old tyres and low fuel as at most tracks. In 2012 the Williams was a bit quicker than the Ferrari at that stage of the year, so it was a case of on what lap could you stop and safely get home without hitting the cliff. The Williams could go earlier, so it was hardly a challenging strategy idea to try for an undercut.

All the teams have lot of data to show when the best time to make the pit stop is. If there is enough of a performance advantage over the car ahead opportunities to diverge from the ideal for a given car can occur and these can be used to make a pass in the pits.

Where teams tend to get caught out is when tyres don’t behave in the way expected and the race pace is significantly different to the expectations, usually due to track temperature. Monaco 2012 was a missed opportunity as Ferrari didn’t anticipate that the soft tyres would have significant warm up issues on the Red Bull and the Mercedes. The Ferrari strategy of running longer was good, getting Alonso ahead of Hamilton, but there was the possibility that another lap, if the tyres could have lasted, may have allowed a place to be gained. That was a tactical opportunity that wasn’t taken. It may not have worked.

Thanks for the essay Martin, excellent analysis as always.
You’re right about how Barcelona during the re-fuelling era favoured new tyres versus light fuel; apart from 2005 when tyre stops were banned!
You’re probably right about Claire not directly calling the shots on strategy, what I would say is she has recruited some very street wise savvy operators which can make sound decisions at the sharp end of the grid. Pat Symonds is a good example, Pat is very good at out-foxing other teams and thinking on his feet.

Good luck to Williams this season, nice to see them on an upward curve. As one who was initially sceptical about the appointment of Claire Williams, thinking it was nepotism on the part of Frank, I am more than happy to have been proved wrong.

Let’s not count our chickens just yet. This isn’t the first time Williams have show good pre season pace only to dissapoint when it counts. They had major issues for the last few years and that includes the culture there, not just the mechanical stuff. No one knows what fuel rates anyone is running and who’s to say Williams isn’t running light and going after sponsorship dollars? I’m playing devil’s advocate here, but to make such a monumental leap all of a sudeen? Don’t know, I think I’ll wait till a few races in to make that call, James.

Yep, I was skeptical about Claire too. For me, she seemed to have come from nowhere too quickly and that always worries me. Dont want to count chickens at this stage, but she is absolutely on her way to proving many of us wrong.

Poor maldonado. Bought a circus, and the midgets grew on him.
But itt is obscene to be spending that kind of money in motorsports, when Venezuela needs it for educación and health. And young people are dying on the streets.

Off topic: had the pleasure of meeting Gary Anderson this week in Nottingham. What a lovely bloke. He said he’ll be working with FOM this year and sadly will not be with the BBC. He had lots of time to talk and was very pleasant. Top bloke!

Yes, good luck to Felipe, but I’ll bet he misses his mate Big Rob on the radio though, even if the straight talking no nonsense Yorkshireman is working behind the scenes at Frank and Claire’s.
That’s a point, he is allowed contractually to start at Grove next month; I bet Frank and Claire can’t wait for Mr Smedley to roll his sleeves and start working with the equally straight talking – and savvy – Pat Symonds!

We all eagerly await ‘your report’ to us James! I’m especially interested in the report that he ‘came back’ on the exact anniversary of his ‘stepping down’ so was there really a Gentleman’s Agreement there – though I doubt he will reveal that!

Max, as far I’m aware Rob is joining Williams, he’s is on “gardening leave” at Ferrari at the moment. The earliest he is allowed to join Frank and Claire is March 2014.
Rob and his wife Lucy have a young family and want to move back to Blighty to bring them up. Big Rob also likes a pint of bitter, full English breakfasts and roast dinners, and the Oxfordshire/Northamptonshire area is better for that than Modena/Maranello!
Rob won’t be Felipe’s race engineer this year, as Frank and Claire have offered work on the technical depo, so expect Big Rob to be working with Pat Symonds getting stuck into some spade work, which is what he loves.
As a straight talking no nonsense Yorkshireman Rob will fit like a glove at Frank and Claire’s.

Going off relative Speed trap figures the Williams has never had less than 60 kilos of fuel on board at the start of a run so there are quite literally whole seconds to shave off their times just from removing fuel. It may not be a title contender but the Williams is a peach and will pleasantly surprise us all, mark my words!

+1 about the solid drivers.
Felipe Massa definitely seems to have regained his mojo and has a point to prove.
Bottas has the speed and the racecraft (canada 2013) where he was third off the grid but had the nous to stay out of trouble when the main contenders were battling it out.
All we need is Martini Livery now

Unfortunately many teams, even successful ones flounder and die in the very harsh and brutal world of Formula One. Since the 1970′s alone, Tyrrell, Lotus (the real one), Brabham and Ligier, race winners all, have disappeared.

For a while in the late 2000′s it looked rather ominous for Williams as well. Then they came back with a surprise win at Barcelona in 2012 and though 2013 was disastrous, it was clear following that lone Spanish win, Williams still had the capability to succeed in F1. It’s as though the resources were available but just not being utilised in the correct way. Now that’s changed, the team is starting to flourish again and its really great to see.

2014 could be Williams best season this century and provide one of F1′s most successful teams a great platform to develop around over the next few years.

Its very interesting times in F1- this new engine formula must surely attract sponsors to more relevant technology. With Claires background in marketing and the new people she put in place it must be just starting to pay dividends. I hope the new environment inspires Felipe to his old form but Im really expecting Bottas to be the gun for the team -I like the idea of another great Finn in the sport. I just hope he is not relinquished to a no2 because of the big latin american money and 2 Felipes to contend with !

I’ve never been a huge fan of Williams, and was only really put into a position of supporting them when Rubens drove for them. On which note, how about 2011, when their testing form and innovative rear end caused many to tip them for wins? That didn’t end well for them, did it? So while I suppose it would be nice to see a great team back on form, I’ll believe it when I see it. Personally, I suspect the absence of Sam Michael is responsible for this apparent upturn in form…